For the last two weekends in a row, protests in central London have given rise to scenes that have been reported around the world and will trouble those concerned about human rights and democracy.
Two weeks ago, over 850 peaceful protestors were arrested under the Terrorism Act (2000) in Parliament Square for holding signs in support of the direct action protest group Palestine Action after the group was proscribed by then Home Secretary Yvette Cooper. The protest in support of Palestine Action was separate from a large demonstration held at the same time by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, which saw at least 20,000 marching through Westminster. The ‘Unite the Kingdom’ protest which drew 150,000 to London the following week was a very different affair. Led by far-right activist Tommy Robinson, it featured speeches by right-wing political figures from across Europe. Elon Musk spoke live via video link-up, echoing conventional extreme-right-wing rhetoric by evoking the “genuine risk of rape and murder and the destruction of the country and the dissolution of the entire way of life.”
I was present in London for the first of these protests, and it was an upsetting scene to witness. Over the course of several hours, police methodically carried protestors away to police vans. Many of the protesters were elderly and some held signs naming their professions ‘paramedic’, ‘teacher’. Protestors came compliantly or resisted peacefully by going limp. Protesters witnessing these scenes chanted ‘shame on you’ at arresting officers; those being arrested largely remained silent. Perhaps strangely, though protestors were being arrested on terrorist charges, police administering the arrests wore normal uniforms as they did not anticipate violence. By contrast, police attending the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ rally wore riot gear and faced an aggressive crowd. Social media flooded with images of violent clashes between police and protestors wearing England flags and Union Jacks. Protestors broke into sterile areas cordoned off by police and attempted to surround and attack counter-protestors. Images of the march indicated attendance was predominantly male and overwhelmingly white. This demographic is reflected in the images released by police of 11 people wanted on suspicion of violent disorder offences, a further 25 protesters were arrested on the day. Prime Minister Keir Starmer criticised the violent actions of some protestors but asserted the right to ‘peaceful protest.’
The vastly different responses by the government to these two protests may seem puzzling at first. However, considering their responses as informed by a return to the ‘populist authoritarianism’ that cultural critic Stuart Hall first diagnosed in the 1980s UK government under Margaret Thatcher may help explain what is going on and further illuminate broader failings among social democrat parties across Europe. The UK government’s simultaneous clamp-down on protestors and embrace of populist rhetoric exemplifies a broader failure among social-democrat parties to respond to our present moment of crisis and address the real and pressing challenges faced by ordinary people.
Authoritarian responses to protesters
The mass arrest of the peacefully-demonstrating Defend Our Juries activists in September was easily anticipated. In fact, this was the third such demonstration since an overwhelming majority of MPs voted to proscribe Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation in July. The proscription was sought after Palestine Action activists broke into a military base and damaged two Royal Air Force planes. Critics argue that property damage of this type is insufficient to meet the threshold for a terrorist offence and that the proscription is a disproportionate response intended to stamp out civil disobedience. It has been reported that those arrested may face up to 14 years in prison if convicted of being a member of a proscribed organisation.
The previous Conservative government introduced legislation targeting protesters, including the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, which the civil liberties organisation Liberty has described as “a clampdown on protest [and enabling] sweeping new powers for the police” and that the bill will “criminalise Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities’ way of life”. In recent years judges have handed down record sentences to protesters charged with disruption and property damage.
Juries have been sympathetic to activists charged with these kinds of offences, and the proscription of Palestine Action is seen by some as an effort to stop juries from acquitting defendants in activism-related trials. A parliamentary report by Lord Walney recommended convening “a process to examine the potential issue of juries acquitting defendants and judges applying laws differently when they are transgressed in the name of progressive causes like climate change and anti-racism.”
The diminished status afforded freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression have lowered the UK’s standing internationally in terms of civil liberties. The international Civicus Monitor, which assesses civic space, has in recent years lowered the UK’s rating from ‘narrowed’ to ‘obstructed.’
Adopting populist narratives and rhetoric
The current UK Labour government has provided continuity for the populist narratives and rhetoric espoused by previous Conservative governments. Anti-immigrant talking points have been a persistent feature of political and media culture in the UK for well over a decade. Several subsequent Home Secretaries have pledged to reduce immigration and ‘stop the small boats’ with refuges crossing the English Channel from France.
Despite having won the election for leader of the UK Labour party on a progressive ‘continuity-Corbyn’ platform, Starmer has taken the party sharply to the right. Spurning the left-wing element of its coalition, the party has embraced economic conservatism with cuts to welfare for the elderly and disabled people. It has also adopted socially conservative positions on LGBTQ+ rights,[1] immigration and Gaza. This is part of an effort to woo conservative voters in areas such as the north of England by projecting an image based on “pride, place and patriotism.”
The ‘Unite the Kingdom’ rally follows a summer marked by protests targeting hotels housing asylum seekers and ‘Operation Raise the Flag’ where activists hung nationalist symbols and flags in public places, including graffitiing St George’s Flags onto footpaths and roundabouts. Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said the government must acknowledge “real concerns” among voters about the impacts of immigration. Starmer declared himself ‘a supporter of flags’ and Cooper told an interviewer that she displayed Union Jack and St George’s flags at home.
Labour’s polling indicates that the party’s embrace of populist rhetoric has not convinced right-wing voters, but has succeeded in alienating much of its own progressive base. As in other European countries, adopting right-wing tactics has left the putatively social democratic parties in the UK vulnerable to criticism from the right. In this case, the main beneficiary has been Nigel Farage, whose Reform party won the largest share of votes in the 2025 local elections by attacking Labour from the far right on immigration. At the recent protests, protestors chanted slogans critical of Starmer while carrying signs reading ‘Send them Home.
A failure to address the real challenges
The situation in the UK is exemplary of a broader crisis across the EU and North America. Since the 2008 financial crisis, the coalition of centre right and social democrat parties that previously dominated mainstream politics have seemed collectively determined to ignore the escalating ‘polycrisis’ we find ourselves in. Domestically, political systems have failed to adequately respond to the cost-of-living crisis and the collapse in living standards for median voters. At the same time, the ongoing climate crisis contributes to escalating geo-political instability, with more and more people displaced by conflict and famine.
Far-right parties have been the main beneficiary of this political stasis. Trust in traditional parties, and institution arrangements like multi-level governance is collapsing. Our current moment is characterised by a febrile, and incoherent political atmosphere and dominated by ‘culture war’ issues. Social media has accelerated the spread of misinformation and amplified harmful narratives about vulnerable groups. The fallout of this looming crisis is drastically changing the character of national politics in countries across Europe.[2] Now more than ever there is a need, as Hall writes, to “construct a politics, […] which is able to address itself, not to one, but to a diversity of different points of antagonism in society; unifying them, in their differences, within a common project.”
“Without the deepening of popular participation in national-cultural life, ordinary people don’t have any experience of actually running anything. We need to re-acquire the notion that politics is about expanding popular capacities, the capacities of ordinary people.“
In Ireland, where the far-right has yet to gain the same foothold it has elsewhere in Europe, there is growing unease about successive government’s failures to address simultaneous crises in healthcare and housing. Prior to last year’s election, delivery of key policy areas was falling short of what is urgently needed, and there seems to be little fresh energy from Leinster house since then. An Irish Times poll earlier this year found that only 14% of voters feel the government is sufficiently tackling problems facing the country. Meanwhile, a report by TASC from earlier this year highlights a growing tendency by Irish politicians from mainstream parties to amplify far-right talking points. In the face of entrenched and daunting challenges for governance, it is easy to see why a retreat into divisive discourse is tempting.
TASC’s Democracy stream explores contemporary challenges for Democracy from Ireland and ways that we can enrich civic and democratic participation. Our research supports the development of an inclusive and participative political culture. The UK example shows us that attempting to commandeer the support of ‘left behind’ constituencies with populist rhetoric is a superficial type of engagement that is doomed from the outset. Rather than pandering this way, what is needed is an empowering approach that gives people a real voice and real power.
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[1] According to rankings by the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA), the UK has dropped from first place in 2015 to 22nd place in 2025 among Europe’s most LGBTQ+-friendly countries.
[2] Germany’s hard-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party came narrowly second to the Social Democratic (SPD) party at the most recent election despite questions around whether the party’s positions are in breach of constitutional provisions designed to prevent a return to National Socialism.
Tiarnán McDonough
As Democracy Researcher at TASC, Tiarnán’s work contributes to TASC’s goal of building democratic resilience by helping strengthen communities and civil society through research that addresses complex social inequalities that undermine democratic participation.
Tiarnán McDonough is an experienced researcher in qualitative and quantitative methods, focusing on social inequalities and democratic participation. His research involves seldom-heard communities to inform programme and policy development through interdisciplinary and inclusive research approaches. As part of this, Tiarnán has experience developing public platforms to connect research findings with communities and policymakers to inform real-world action.
Tiarnán has previously worked as a researcher in academic and applied research settings, including as part of a project at Maynooth University that explored how EU law can advance cultural rights for people with disabilities. Before this, he worked for independent research organisations including the National Centre for Social Research in the UK. He is experienced in working with various stakeholders and partners including NGOs, civil society organisations and government departments and developing research that explores sensitive topics with vulnerable participants.
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